19th Mar 2015 07:53
LONDON (Alliance News) - Property adviser Savills PLC on Thursday hiked its dividend payout as its pretax profit pushed higher in 2014 on the back of stronger revenue, with the company boosted by a strong London market, a recovery in the UK regional property market and a good performance in the US.
Savills said its pretax profit for the year was GBP84.7 million, up from GBP70.1 million a year earlier. On the back of the rise in profit, the company has proposed a hike to its final dividend to 7.25 pence, from 7.00 pence, and said its total dividend payout for the year will be 23 pence per share, up 21% year-on-year, on the back of a further 12 pence supplementary dividend the company will pay based on the underlying performance of its transaction advisory business.
Revenue increased to GBP1.08 billion from GBP904.8 million a year earlier, boosted by a 38% increase in transaction advisory revenue driven by the contribution of the Savills Studley business in the US, recoveries in certain European markets, and strong performances in Asia and the UK.
The company also saw record revenue across its UK business through a strong London market and a recovery in the regions.
Consultancy revenue increased 13% and property management revenue rose 3% on improved margins, Savills said.
Jeremy Helsby, Chief Executive of Savills, said 2015 has started well for the company, though it is retaining a cautious outlook on the recovery of the Hong Kong commercial market and expects subdued conditions in the UK residential markets due to uncertainty around the General Election. It expects those factors to result in a higher-than-normal weighting of its 2015 results to the second half.
But Helsby said the company is confident of further progress in 2015 due to the strength of its US operation, the diversity of its UK and Asia Pacific businesses, and expectations of further improvement in Europe.
In a separate announcement, Savills said has struck a deal to acquire German investment management house SEB Asset Management AG for up to EUR21.5 million in cash. Following the deal, the business will be rebranded as Savills Investment Management.
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
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